1. Technical Field
The present application relates generally to nanotube switches and methods of making same, and, more specifically, to carbon nanotube fabrics and methods of making same for use in information processing circuits and systems.
2. Discussion of Related Art
As CMOS technology is scaled to smaller dimensions with an ever increasing number of devices per chip (in the billions of transistors), the FET complexity is increasing, wiring complexity is increasing, and electronics is approaching quantum-mechanical boundaries. As a result, power dissipation is rapidly increasing. For example, at the 1 μm technology node, an Intel i486 microprocessor dissipated approximately 2 Watts/cm2 but at the 0.18 μm technology node, the Intel Pentium III microprocessor dissipates approximately 70 Watts/cm2, a 35× increase. Further scaling results in still higher power dissipation. What is needed is a way of improving electronic system function while reducing power dissipation.
Neurobiological systems reached a technology boundary long ago. The brain, for example, is far more efficient than any electronic device. The brain is based on water and electrolytes, is 3D, analog, complex, and dissipates very little power. Electronic circuits, made from sand, metal, and using 2D interconnections, have been shown to exhibit limited behavioral characteristics similar to neural network functions but none have made significant inroads in achieving efficient neural networks.